HomeHistory of Memphis BarbequeBBQers and their culturePigs and pig farmingNutrition and preparation of a bbq mealBBQ in the USATest your BBQ knowledgeHomeHistory of Memphis BarbequeBBQers and their culturePigs and pig farmingNutrition and preparation of a bbq mealBBQ in the USATest your BBQ knowledge

I'm at Tops Barbecue. I'm looking up at the menu to see what they have, and deciding what I want. What does a nine-year-old need to eat? I know what I want: a Sprite, cole slaw, baked beans, and some really juicy barbecue ribs with lots of tangy thick sauce. Is this a healthy meal for me to eat? What's in other barbecue meals? What kind of nutrition does a barbecue meal have? What is it missing? I think back to my Cub Scout book and its food pyramid, to meals I've seen in restaurants, and realize that some of the meals have really healthy things in them, but it's not exactly balanced and there's still some missing.  

 

 

First, let's look at the food pyramid. The food pyramid helps you make a balanced meal by showing you how much of a certain food group you need, and what things to put into a balanced meal. On the bottom of the food pyramid is the wheat, grains, bread, and the pasta group. You should eat 6 to 11 servings a day. On top of it are the fruits and vegetables. You should eat 2 to 4 servings of fruit a day, and 3 to 5 servings of vegetables a day. Then on top of the fruits and vegetables are two levels: proteins and dairy. Proteins are the meats, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts, from which

you should choose 2 to 3 servings a day. Dairy products are milk, yogurt, and cheese, and you should choose 2 to 3 servings a day from these. On the very top are fats, oils,and sweets. Use these only sparingly. So the food pyramid is a good model to tell how to eat a balanced diet.

I'm standing there looking at the menu, trying to decide what I'm going to get. There's barbecued pork shoulder, cole slaw, baked beans, chips, ribs, corn on the cob, biscuits, potato salad, and rolls. There are some things here in the wheat, grains, bread, and pasta category. These are corn on the cob, biscuits, potato salad, and rolls. Some people may think that corn on the cob is a vegetable, but it's not. It's a grain, because the part you eat is the seed head. The next category is fruits, but there are no fruits on the menu. The next category is vegetables. Cole slaw is made from vegetables, but it also has lots of fats and oils. The next category is the proteins. Here we're in luck, because that's the category that a barbecue meal is all about! There's barbecue pork shoulder, baked beans, and ribs. The next category is milk, yogurt, and cheese. There's not really any dairy in a barbecue meal, so let's see if we can get a glass of milk. Let's move on to the next category: fats, oils, and sweets! Chips definitely go in this category. There's also fats and oils in everything else on the menu! Even the biscuits are made with butter! I can't eat here and avoid that, hmt-mm!

So we can look at what's there and tell what's missing. Fruits and dairy are missing, and you can't get vegetables without lots of fat. You can get your protein for the week, and your fats for the month. We'd better plan on lots of salad, some dairy, and some fruits for the next meal!

So we've looked at a barbecue meal. The best I can order off the menu is some dry ribs or shoulder (and I like them better wet!), cole slaw, some rolls, and a glass of milk if they have some.

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